


How Should I Tell You That I'm Sorry?

by ThornedDream



Category: Incarceron Series - Catherine Fisher
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-19
Updated: 2016-08-12
Packaged: 2018-06-09 09:11:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6899932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThornedDream/pseuds/ThornedDream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's the night following Finn's coronation as King Giles, and the entire Crystal Palace is in a festive frenzy. Of course the new monarch's two best friends, Keiro and Attia, arrive to the celebration. There the two decide to break their tension and enjoy each other's company. But of course Keiro, being the arrogant fool he is, ends up making a mistake and messes everything up. Now it's up to him to fix things between Attia and himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was the loud array of festive enjoyments that reverberated throughout the Crystal Palace and into the wood beyond. Merry voices sang and laughed while feet pranced and tapped in exquisite dances along the marble floors. Indeed, this evening was anything but ordinary, for it was the celebration following the coronation of the Realm’s next monarch: King Giles Ferdinand Alexander Havaarna. Now with a gold crown upon his head, the ruler sat in his luxurious throne with his destined bride unto his side: Claudia Arlexa. The couple watched with enjoyment and delight over the dancing citizens who gladly filled their hall. The king watched for one particular head of blonde hair, tied back into an impressively long ponytail. His oathbrother, Keiro, he hoped, would take great pleasure in celebrating over the grand success.

Keiro leaned a broad shoulder upon one column of marble, watching the people dance with his sharp icy eyes. A rich coat of bright red velvet, decorated with extravagantly detailed golden trims, adorned his defined torso. Along with it he wore a similarly golden vest, a blouse of the purest of whites, and a matching white cravat pinned with a shimmering ruby clip. Upon his legs he wore dark pants which hugged and slimmed his waist, and even darker boots that brushed his knees. It was an outfit that perfectly matched the flamboyant lord’s attitude: flashy in all of its unmatched glory.

He watched with his arms crossed over his chest, not quite certain what he was watching for. At one moment his pair of alert eyes caught sight of one pair of massive double doors. They opened and closed with a gap just barely wide enough for a singular person to pass through- and an especially petite person at that. There were no announcements, and no uproar of partygoers who may have recognized the individual. With a smirk, Keiro knew exactly who had just entered the ball.

He then set off to reach the other end of the hall, taking the long way around the dozens of dancing couples. There, gazing into the crowd, stood a small young maiden with familiar dark hair.

Attia had donned a graceful gown, sewn from warm yellow fabrics that shone with hues of oranges, making it seem as though she were wearing a sunset. Upon her ears and across her neck she wore jewels of similar color: amber, most likely.

Being in this impressively formal attire, she seemed almost unapproachable. But upon noticing her flashy friend walking closer, she turned and gave one of the most amusingly frustrated looks possible.

“I can barely breathe in this garbage,” she wheezed while gesturing to the tightly fitted fabrics around her torso.

Keiro chuckled and rested his hands upon his narrow hips. “Well, at least you look nice… -ish.”

But Attia was less amused. “Unlike you,” she said with pouting lips. Her voice was filled with unwavering attitude, but also hinted at a shimmer of jesting playfulness.

“Oh?” The blonde lord was now smirking. “Does that mean I look worse than ‘nice’? Or better?”

Attia didn’t answer. She only turned and gazed one again at the dancing couples, who twirled and swayed in rhythm with the sophisticated music that rose above even the loud tapping feet and cheering voices.

Keiro observed Attia’s fixated attention on the waltz of the dancing couples. His own sharp eyes did not fail to catch the glimpse of fascination and interest in hers. He had learned well by now that there was a constant curiosity that always hungered deep inside her, craving all sorts of new experiences. It now seemed apparent that this also included waltzing.

And so, in a manner almost horrifically informal, he asked her, “do you want to dance?”

Immediately Attia spun her head to stare at him, astonished and nearly disgusted. For a second Keiro thought his offer would be furiously- no, violently- rejected.

“But… we don’t know how to dance.”

At least it wasn’t a direct “no.”

“How hard can it be? We’ll just go out there and do what everyone else is doing,” he proposed.

Attia stared hard at him, then looked once again at the dancing couples. “Well… it does look fun,” she murmured.

And so with a new grip on her wrist, and without another word, he led her out onto the dance floor. There the two turned to face each other and took up relatively proper hand positioning: one hand meeting another, and the other hand meeting shoulder or waist. The two then began to step side to side, taking a clumsy pattern that could hardly be considered “dancing.” Keiro watched attentively at the tapping and twirling of the feet around them, trying his best to lead Attia in the same motions. However, his efforts went unrewarded. Their actions were anything but graceful. Their steps were blocky and their timing was irregular. Countless times their feet fumbled over each other, frantic in their messy confusion.

Regardless, the two became consumed in tiny fits of laughter. They found amusement in their own blunders, and with each mistake they made, their laughing increased until they were near hysterical.

Eventually, they surrendered to the undeniable fact that they could not and would not properly dance the same dance as everyone else around them. They accepted this, and soon decided to dance their own waltz. They made their own moves and turned only when they felt like it, stepping wherever they pleased. At one moment Keiro had attempted to spin Attia, who was already dizzy from her laughter. In the middle of the spin she lost her balance and nearly fell over, but was saved by a thick, red-velvet cladded arm.

In that moment, holding Attia in his arm, Keiro’s gaze locked with hers, and the world around them seemed to slow. He offered a grin, which seemed to radiate with a new aura that Attia had not seen before. It beamed with happiness and joy rather than pride and arrogance. Attia gladly returned it with a shy smile of her own.

After hoisting her back up onto her own feet, Keiro led Attia once again through their unorganized and formless dancing. They were certainly distinctive through the crowd of synchronized pairs, and many times they earned gazes of confusion and disapproval from onlookers. However, they could not seem to care less. For once in their lives, their delight was genuine, and their laughs were absent of fear, irony, or sarcasm. Through the wrongness of their dance they had made the world right, even if for just one night.

When their feet grew sore and their entertainment had dwindled down, Keiro and Attia decided to leave the bustle of the hall. They stepped outside to enjoy the crisp air of the night, and now they were strolling through the grand gardens of the palace’s courtyard.

“Okay,” Keiro chuckled into the silence. “One more time. Pay attention.”

A gold coin then appeared in his hand. He skillfully flipped it between the fingers of his left hand, then smirked as the same coin seemingly teleported to his right hand and twirled between his fingers there. Once the coin was finished, it vanished from both hands. To this, Keiro gasped with astonishment, as if he did not know the pattern to his own trick. He then reached behind Attia’s ear, where he seemed to pull out the same coin. Then with a single clap of hands, the coin disappeared one last time before he bowed, signaling the end of his performance.

Attia immediately grinned and applauded with her hands. “Alright. Impressive, I admit. But do you have any other tricks, Mr. Sorcerer’s Apprentice?”

With that, Keiro then stopped walking and turned to stare at her, his striking blue gaze shaming even the spring starflowers around them.

“Well… maybe one more,” he murmured. Then, after a few more seconds of contemplating the question, he continued with, “close your eyes.”

Attia did not hesitate to display her confusion through the expression on her face, but she obeyed nonetheless and proceeded to close her eyes.

With her eyes now closed, Keiro let his attention wander to the details across her face: her high cheek bones, her curved nose, her thin eyebrows, her round lips…

Letting out a shaky breath, he then let his impulse take control of his actions. It was an awful habit that everyone, including himself, knew he had yet to break. Regardless, it seized him once again this night, and it caused his body to lean forward and his lips to lay innocently upon hers in a delicate kiss.

Feeling the sudden smooth warmth upon her lips, Attia briefly leaned in, letting the intoxicating comfort overtake her. But she was fast to catch herself, and her hands quickly flew up to the man’s chest to shove him away.

_Slap!_

Her thin fingers took one violent swipe across his cheek, causing the sharp sound of skin hitting skin to pierce through the air of the courtyard.

Gasping and rubbing his now pink and swollen cheek, Keiro stumbled back from the impact and looked with wide eyes at the enraged girl before him. Only a few moments ago she had been happily laughing and smiling with him, and now there was practically steam pouring out from her sneered nostrils.

“Attia, wh-… Are you bloody mad?! What was that for?!”

“You really think I’m that easy?!” she barked immediately. “After some dancing and a few magic tricks, you think you can just kiss me unannounced?!”

Keiro stumbled over his words, for once put in a position of not knowing what to say.

“What do you take me for? One of your whores in the Prison?!”

He couldn’t bring himself to speak, but he frantically began to shake his head left and right. _'No, no that’s not true!’_ If only he could will his mouth to speak those words.

Attia scoffed, showing no sign of calming down. “I can’t believe you! How dare you?! And right when I was beginning to enjoy your company!” And with one last shove to his chest, Keiro was thrown into the water of the fountain behind him.

Swiftly she turned, casting one last glare at the mess of the bewildered lord, before furiously marching away.

She made her way to the guest chamber which Finn- King Giles- had specifically gifted to her. There she aggressively tore at the fabric prison which restricted her, complete with a corset and hoop skirt with layers of petticoats. Her anger fueled her actions, making the usually difficult task seem effortless. Bit by bit her body was finally freed. She tugged at the jewels hanging from her neck and ears, casting them aside with a toss towards her vanity. Once she was finally stripped from head to toe, she slipped on a lose nightgown which stroked and brushed her soothingly. It was not enough to calm her, however, for rage still boiled deep within in her veins.

 _'The arrogance! The nerve! The gall! How dare he, how dare he?!’_ These thoughts screamed endlessly through her mind, causing her to scream out with frustration as she hit and punched the pillows on her bed.

But with each new swing of her arm, her body grew increasingly tired, and eventually her exhaustion seized her and caused her to collapse on the plush mattress below. With a few flutters of her eyes, she finally succumbed and dissolved to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I'm so sorry for the long wait. And this chapter is so short, too! Please forgive me. The last few weeks of school were a drag. Summer is here, though! I'll be able to write more in the near future.

Attia awoke the next morning, feeling the weight of her bones, her skin, the sheets, the air. She had slept in two hours late, and her body punished her with great aching discomfort. Normally she was an early riser who enjoyed waking at dawn to gaze at the magnificence of sunrise. Now her joints screamed in opposition at sudden the change of schedule.

She sat up and groaned at the stiffness in her legs, back, and arms. She took a moment to stretch, then grabbed her cotton bathrobe and went to her washroom. There she soaked in hot water to further alleviate the pain before dressing herself in an emerald gown. It was loose and flowed along with her movements; a significant improvement to the gown she had worn the previous night.

The previous night…

Her stomach tensed at her recollection of the humiliating events. It made her dizzy and sick, but mostly it made her blood boil all over again. Her hands clenched into tight fists. That brash moron! To find the nerve to kiss her so suddenly and unannounced, he truly must have thought her so easy. At least a simple, “may I kiss you?” would have been plenty more respectful!

Attia scowled while her cheeks grew pink at the thought. Her answer would have certainly been, “no,” of course…

She shook her head and grumbled to herself while her fingers brushed and stroked her hair. Everything was all so frustrating, and she was so confused.

When she had finished preparing herself for the day ahead, she opened the door to her chamber to make her leave. But she was stopped right in her tracks before she could make it through the doorway. There at her feet, she was surprised to find a beautiful bouquet of flowers, nestled in a glass vase with a ribbon tied around it.

The gorgeous arrangement of flowers included pink desert roses, white angel trumpets, blood lilies, and jasmine. Attia gasped and marveled at the sight.

Hesitantly, she picked up the assortment of flowers and stroked delicately at the soft petals. Then, glancing at the silken red ribbon, she noticed a small piece of paper threaded through it. Flipping the note over, she read the single word written upon it.

“SORRY.”

The word was written in all capital letters, in a penmanship that was most horrific. Some letters were written larger than others, and the double Rs each had two tails instead of one: one that was much too short and one that was much too long. Attia couldn’t help but chuckle a little. She knew only one person in the palace with such awful literacy.

Keiro.

Attia stared at the pair of Rs, thinking about how they had come to be written so especially poorly. She thought about Keiro seated at a desk, grunting with frustration as he worked on the note. Finn would have been there to help him, of course, for Keiro was truly incapable of independently writing anything other than his own name.

She imagined how he wrote slowly, his hand shaking and jittering. Then when he had finished the double Rs, Finn would stop him and sigh. “No, that’s wrong. You need to write the tails longer.”

Confused, frustrated, and embarrassed, Keiro would ask, “what? Why?!”

And so Finn would explain. “If the tails are that short, the Rs will look like Ps. Then the note will read ‘SOPPY’ instead of 'SORRY.’”

Then in a fluster, Keiro would write new tails upon each R, these ones longer than their predecessors.

Yes, that’s likely how it happened. Attia giggled at the thought.

Wait! No! This was wrong. She was supposed to be furious at him. She snarled and looked away from the beautiful flowers.

However, it was true that an apology from Keiro was rare. So rare, in fact, that she couldn’t recall ever hearing him apologize once for as long as she had known him. He was a man who valued pride and self-worth, so any display of guilt was unusual, and thus, held great weight.

Perhaps this act of kindness was more sincere that she had initially thought.

She turned and re-entered her chamber, leaving the gorgeous bouquet of flowers upon her vanity. Then with that, and the strangely pleasant warmth beginning to grow in her chest, she finally exited the room and made her way to the palace kitchen for a morning snack.

The kitchen, as always, was a flurry of bustling cooks preparing dish after dish, and kitchen maids scurrying to wash the fine china platters with haste.

At first Attia considered maybe she shouldn’t enter and join the mess of busy people, but one particular kitchen maid, who she had shared quite a few pleasant conversations with, smiled upon seeing the short haired noblewoman. Quickly she raised her hand from the bowl she had been scrubbing and gestured for her to come closer. Attia carefully closed the door behind her and made her way across the kitchen, taking caution with each of her steps.

“Good morning, Lucia,” she said when she finally approached the maid.

“Good morning, Lady Attia! You slept in unusually late today.”

Attia could only tilt her head and shrug. “I had an exhausting night.”

The maid called Lucia gave a knowing smile and for a moment lowered her bowl and rag into the bucket of water before her. “It wouldn’t have anything to do with Lord Keiro, now, would it?”

Attia widened her eyes. She hadn’t expected anyone to hear what had happened, not even the maids or servants. Apparently she had underestimated the strength of gossip among the busy workers.

“You mean… it caught wind that quickly?”

Lucia laughed and shook her head, surprising Attia. “Oh heavens, no. Not yet, at least. So something did happen?”

Attia lowered her gaze to the floor and gave a small nod. “We had a little conflict last night.”

“Hm,” Lucia hummed. “I only guessed because he came in earlier this morning, requesting that a special breakfast be made for you. He paid a pretty price to the head pastry chef. A very insistent one, that Keiro.”

Attia’s shock must have been evident on her face. She could feel her cheeks warming up.

“Really?” she asked softly.

To this, Lucia nodded. “Your pastry is waiting for you on that cart over there, dear.”

And so Attia made her way across the kitchen to the cart Lucia gestured to. There she saw soups and meat pies among many sweet pastries, one of which was placed with a label inscribed with Attia’s name.

The pastry made for her.

Attia picked it up carefully, not wanting to disturb the other dishes on the cart, and observed the treat. It was in the shape of a crescent, and was made from soft fluffy breading that looked and smelled blissfully sweet and buttery. She remembered Finn telling her about these pastries. They were called croissants. This particular one had been adorned with sliced plums and drizzled with maple syrup. She hummed at the soothing comfort its warmth radiated.

With a turn and one last wave of appreciation and farewell to Lucia, Attia left the kitchen with the dish in her hands. She made her way back to her chamber, where she sat and enjoyed her pastry in the calm silence of her seclusion.

After the treat was finished and the morning had melted away into the afternoon, Attia rose from her table and made her way to the gardens outside. The sky was clear and the sun was warm, casting beautiful rays of light upon the green leaves of the young trees and flowers around her. She merrily strolled to the center of the courtyard, admiring the sights around her.

There, where she had left him, was Keiro. He was seated on the edge of the fountain, this time outside the water rather than inside. He had his arms rested upon his knees, and he raised his head when he caught sight of Attia approaching him.

“Good morning. Did you get…-?”

“Yes.” Attia was fast to interrupt him. “I got the flowers and pastry. Thank you, I appreciate it, but why?”

Keiro raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, ‘why’?”

“Well,” Attia began as she sat down next to him, “you aren’t usually one to do kind things for others. You usually only care for yourself. So why give me nice things like flowers and treats?”

The corners of Keiro’s lips curved downwards into a disappointed frown. “Didn’t you read the note on the vase? Or was it really that badly written?”

Attia tried to resist, but couldn’t help stifling a laugh. “It was pretty bad. I couldn’t make out the letters to save my life!” Then with a playful nudge of her elbow into Keiro’s arm, she let out more tiny laughs.

Then it came Keiro’s turn to chuckle. “Well I wouldn’t want to terrify you by being _too_ un-Keiro-like. I had to make it at least a little familiar.”

Attia hummed with agreement, then let out a sigh. “Well, actually, I could read the note. But I didn’t expect…” Her voice trailed off, failing to find the proper words to speak next.

Keiro watched her for a few moments. Attia couldn’t be sure if he was waiting for her to finish her phrase, or if he was lost in his own thoughts, trying to form a phrase himself.

Then finally he stood and spoke. “Come with me. I had a stable boy prepare our horses. I have something to show you.”

Attia found herself too surprised and flustered to respond, and she remained sitting on the edge of the fountain.

“Well? Come on,” Keiro further urged as he took a few more steps.

After a few hesitant moments, Attia then rose herself onto her legs and followed him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I shall end this fanfic with lots of fluff! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧

“So where are you taking me? You haven’t told me yet.” Attia spoke ahead to Keiro. She rode upon her own chestnut horse, following after Keiro and his black stallion.

They traveled along a barely visable path through what would have once been the Great Woods surrounding the Glass Court. Now what was left was little more than stone mountains coated with dust and crumbling remains of past plant life. Without Protocol and its decievingly beautiful holograms, the ugly reality of the world they lived in was fully exposed.

There was still, however, some beauty to behold amidst the unappealing grey setting around them. The beginnings of new life was appearing from the soil. Tiny tree sproutlings rose from the gound to meet the air, and small plants which would soon blossom magnificent flowers brushed at their feet as they rode forward. It was a sign of hope; that the world would recover and, with some help, everything would right itself in due time. And it seemed that the more they rode forward, deeper into the mountains, the more this hope was visable in the growing amount of green vegetation around them.

"I won't tell you," Keiro answered. "It's a surprise!"

Attia huffed out a breath of annoyance. Sapphique damn his cursed spontaneity. At least she knew this much: wherever they were going, she had never been there before. There was some excitement in that. Attia loved anything new. She loved new experiences, new foods, and new places.

"Can't you at least tell me if we're close?"

Keiro let out a small chuckle as he glanced at her over his shoulder. It was one of those chuckles that enraged Attia with how easily it fluttered her soul. Each crescendo brought swelling to her heart, and each breath stole a piece of it. Apprently his theiving days were not quite over.

"What's wrong, Flower? Don't tell me you're already done with our adventure?"

Attia quickly evaded eye contact by turning her gaze aside. She could feel her face getting warmer from the "Flower" nickname. Yes, her cheeks were undoubtedly red now. Was that another reason for his floral gift? Because he viewed her as a "flower"?

Damn him.

"No, that's not it. I'm just curious, and... a little excited. That's all."

Keiro hummed in comprehension and returned his attention to the path ahead. If he noticed the blush upon her cheeks, he didn't reveal it. Attia let out a sigh of relief.

They continued on their path, enjoying the occasional green patches of vegetation and the crisp clean air. The rest of the journey was for the most part spent in peaceful quiet, save for a few occassional comments the two exchanged between each other.

Eventually, at some point deeper in the mountains, a deep rumble began shaking Attia's ears and bones, growing louder as they ventured forward.

"What is that?!" Attia had to shout over the thunderous roar to be heard.

But Keiro didn't answer, and only shook his head. His long golden ponytail bobbed and swayed with each turn.

Attia's grip on the reins of her horse tightened with frustration.

From then on the rumbling never left, and at some point, she couldn't help but notice the slope in the earth below them. They were travelling uphill. How long had they been increasing in altitude? How high up were they? She had no way of telling, for miles of dark trees filled her sight no matter where she casted her gaze.

Finally the trees parted to reveal a large clearing in the forest, complete with the greenest bed of grass she had ever seen. Her jaw dropped when she and her horse crossed the threshold.

It was more than a clearing. It was a large meadow on the edge of a massive cliff. Bright green grass was spread out like a soft blanket, complete with beautiful wildflowers. At this height, the breeze swept up their hair and sleeves, and gave a cool brush across their faces. Far, far away and down below, Attia could see the shimmering glint of Finn's palace: the Glass Court. To her left, she finally saw the source of the loud rumbling that shook her. It was a river which poured out over the edge of the cliff, cascading the many feet down to the ground below. It was quieter at this height, for the crashing water was now far down below them, but it was still audible.

"Finn says it's called a 'waterfall,'" Keiro explained. He then twisted his torso and crossed one leg over his stallion to hop off. Now on his own two feet, he brushed his clothes and walked closer to the edge. Attia did the same.

"A 'waterfall,'" she repeated with breathless amazement in her voice.

Keiro turned his head and stared at Attia's profile, admiring the way the sunshine's glow framed her face. Wonder filled the sparkling golden rays of her wide eyes, and her lips remained parted in total awe. He couldn't help but smile a little.

"It's pretty, huh?" his voice was now softer.

"Amazing..."

"Yeah."

Only then did he tear his gaze from Attia to stare more at the sights before him.

They remained like this for the next few moments, consumed in awestruck silence. Eventually Keiro turned back to his stallion and began rummaging through the leather saddlebags. It was then that Attia spoke again.

"How did you find this place?"

Keiro let out another soft laugh, pulling out two black pouches from the bags. "You'd think after all my years inside that bloody prison, I'd be done with adventures. But apparently not."

Attia blinked. "You mean you discovered this place on your own?"

He nodded his affirmation while dragging out a large cloth from one bag and draping it over his arm. "I like to explore the Realm every now and then." He was now spreading the fabric out in the middle of the grass. "I found this place a few weeks ago. From what I've seen, it's the best regrown area in the entire woods."

Attia turned her head to stare at the misty spray of the restless river and its plummeting drop. She curiously raised an eyebrow. "Maybe it's the water?"

"Interesting... Yeah, it may be."

Attia returned her attention to Keiro, and saw that he was now seated on the sheet of cloth and opening one of the pouches.

"Oh? What's this?" she asked while walking closer.

"I brought lunch for us," Keiro explained. "Take a seat."

Attia obeyed and sat in front of him with her legs crossed. He then handed her the other pouch, and pulled out bread and meat from his own. Attia opened her pouch and saw that hers was packed with the same set of food. She graciously ate a few bites before humming with appreciation and smiling at Keiro. "Thank you."

Keiro paused for a few quick moments before shrugging his shoulders. "I didn't prepare the food myself, I only brought it. But," he then raised his head to smile back at Attia with the faintest of smiles, "you're welcome."

They then proceeded to eat their lunches in a mutual silence. When they were done, Attia brushed the crumbs off of her lap and Keiro let out a sigh and leaned back onto his hands. Closing his eyes, he tilted his head back to take in the sunshine and breeze.

"What are you doing?" Attia tittered while leaning forward. Keiro's only answer was a hum of comfort.

Her tittering stopped as her gaze began to travel down from his face to his stretched out neck, then down to his collar, then down to the tight shirt which was shaped to his chest...

Suddenly her mouth was dry and her heart was pounding furiously.

A snarl left her lips as she looked away. What was wrong with her?! She should not have been looking at him like that! Had she been alone, she would have certainly slapped herself right then and there.

Keiro must have heard her snarl. He quickly opened his icy blue eyes to look at her. For a moment she thought he was going to ask her what was troubling her, but that never happened. Instead, he sat up straight again and stared intently at her.

"You're still mad at me, aren't you?"

Surprised, Attia immediately opened her mouth to tell him otherwise, that the snarl was for another reason, but he was fast to interrupt her. He would not let her say one word.

"No, listen... I-" he took a deep breath and rubbed his forehead before continuing. "I'm not very good at stuff like this, I know that. I uh... I gave you presents, but I know there needs to be more to an apology than just gifts. I know I need to actually say something to you. But I'm- ugh- I'm better at materialistic things, not emotional." He was now bent forward with his head down in obvious agonizing embarrassment. "I'm really bad at this."

Attia watched with her eyes wide, completely at a loss for words. Of all the things she had expected from Keiro, a genuine heartfelt apology was never one of them. Seeing him bent over caused a deep sinking feeling to begin tugging on her stomach. She wanted to ease his discomfort, and so she reached a hand forward to rub his shoulder. "It's okay. I'm listening. You can take as much time as you need."

Another shaky breath snuck past his lips as he eased a bit more into Attia's touch. He then raised his head again to look at her, and this time he seemed more composed. He was now ready to begin.

"I know what I did last night was sudden. I know that I don't have the best history of treating you well. I know how confusing it must have been. It may have even frightened you. I just didn't even think about how sudden it would be, because... you've slowly been growing on me for a long time, so it didn't- Ugh!" Keiro let out a frustrated groan. "And now I'm making excuses. I shouldn't be making excuses in an apology. I knew I would be bad at this."

"No." Attia shook her head. "You're doing fine. Keep going."

Keiro watched her with a hesitant gaze before continuing. "I should have given it more time. We had only just started to really get along. I should have waited. It was sudden, and so I should have at least asked you first. I know that now. It was- I was... stupid. I'm sorry."

Attia was now battling against tears with all of her might, her hands clenched tight and gripping at the sheet. She struggled to form words and calm the racing in her veins. After taking in a few breaths through her nose, she found the means to speak again.

"I never expected any of this, Keiro. I'm really glad." Now a large grin was tugging at the corners of her lips. "I forgive you."

Keiro stared at her more, waiting some moments before gathering the courage to speak again. "And, just to clarify, you're not just another one of those girls from the Prison. You're more to me than that. You've saved my life, you've kept me from making mistakes, and you stood by me even when I did make mistakes. And if that isn't enough, I also think you're beautiful, very smart, and very brave..." His voice was now quieter and his cheeks were a light dusty shade of pink. "You're unlike any girl I've ever met before."

That was it. Try as she might, she could no longer fight back her sobs. Attia's eyes finally flooded, and her cheeks were now streaked with rows of running salt water. She cupped her hands over her face to let out a few more sobs, then crawled closer to Keiro and curled herself into his torso, all while mumbling, "damn you," under her breath.

Keiro let out a grin, then wrapped his arms around her to hug her closer. He then hummed and whispered close to her ear, "I love you too."

"You dumbass," Attia grumbled while rubbing her cheek against the warmth of his chest. "That's my line."

She had to admit, though, she was impressed that he remembered those words from inside the Prison. Maybe they stuck with him more than she thought...

After a few moments in their warm embrace, Keiro then fell backwards onto his back, pulling Attia down on top of him. There, laying in the grass, he held her head close to his collar and stroked his fingers through her short messy locks of dark hair. She nestled more into him, adjusting and taking a more comfortable position. After a few hums, she then looked up at him, the sunlight making her eyes the beautiful color of honey.

Keiro brushed her bangs away, then softly whispered, "Attia?"

To this, Attia closed her eyes and slowly let her head tilt to one side. "Yeah...?"

"Can I kiss you now?"

A small smile twitched onto Attia's lips, and she then nodded her approval. "You may."

Then, without any hesitation, Keiro brought Attia closer in his arms and lifted his head up to bring his lips onto hers. This time, unlike the previous night, Attia gladly returned the kiss by pressing her lips back. Then one kiss melted away into another, then another, and then another, until Attia finally separated her lips from his to rest her head on his shoulder.

Now with a bigger smile on his satisfied lips, Keiro gazed up at the sky and watched as the clouds rolled on far above him. Who knew such a beautiful sky could exist? He certainly didn't until he finally saw it for himself just a few months ago.

"I love this place," he whispered softly. "I love it so much. That manor Finn promised me? I think I want to have it built right here. Right on this cliff."

"But what if I want my manor built here?" Attia playfully giggled into his neck.

"Too bad! I found it first."

"Mmm... You can still hear the waterfall, though. It will be difficult for you to sleep. You might want to have it built a little deeper in the woods."

Keiro considered the argument as he raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, that's a good point." He then spread his arms out to brush his hands against the soft green blades of grass. "It would also be a shame for this land to be torn up."

Attia nodded her agreement into his neck. "So you'll have it built a bit further?"

"Yep, but just a few miles."

Attia's hand was now stroking his golden bangs back. "It will also be cold at night with this height. Be sure to buy lots of blankets to stay warm."

"I will. Don't worry."

Attia smiled as her cheeks grew pinker. "You should get lots of sunflowers too. Sunflowers are so nice..."

Keiro turned his head to look down at Attia's content and relaxed face, then kissed her scalp. "Yeah, I'll get sunflowers."

Attia grinned and hummed with approval, then stared at her hand as she rested it gently on his chest. "Keiro...?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."


End file.
